The story about my aliyah – as featured in the Israel Hayom newspaper

People really care about you. This a very special Israeli trait.

Six years go, I decided to pursue my dream and immigrated to Israel when I was 34 years old. I grew up in Rio de Janeiro, where I attended a Jewish school and was a member of Jewish youth movement Chazit Hanoar.

The decision was taken when I just couldn’t stand the urban violence in Rio anymore. There were a couple of episodes that pushed me out of my comfort zone.

I arrived in Israel on Sept. 8, 2015, with only two suitcases and lived at the absorption center in Raanana. I found my first job through Gvahim, an NGO that provides Olim Chadashim (new immigrants) with the network, the tools, and the knowledge. They help people land their first job in Israel.

Because of my language skills — I am fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese — I found my first job at Netafim, an Israeli manufacturer of irrigation equipment and a pioneer in drip irrigation technology. There, I used to manage internal organizational projects across the Americas, all the way from the US down to Chile.

I was very happy to work for such an innovative company. But a turnaround happened in 2018: a Mexican company acquired Netafim and my position was transferred to the Latin American country.

After struggling to find a job, I decided to launch my own blog on The Times of Israel (TOI) news portal to share my personal experiences in the Israeli market. As a result, I took my first steps into the digital world to stand out in the crowd.

Assaf Luxembourg, a fellow blogger in the TOI, approached me and asked if he could help me find a job. Immediately, I agreed. Fast forward a couple of months. He once sent out an email to his contacts offering them a job opportunity to work directly with him. It wasn’t exactly what I was looking for, but I decided to give it a shot.

Israel has something very unique and touching: solidarity, this readiness to help the other, this empathy. In general, I always try to keep an optimistic mindset. I am thrilled to see so much solidarity.

Also, this is how I landed my current job at Checkmarx, an Israeli cybersecurity company.

I’m sure I made the right decision. I’m proud to be bold enough to live a successful life in Israel.

—

Originally published at “ישראל היום” (Israel Hayom), translated and adapted from Israel Hayom, originally written by Assaf Golan.